JOHOR BAHRU (Malaysia) - South China Athletic ousted the Chinggis Broncos from their rule as kings of BCL Asia-East by way of a 90-75 victory in the 2026 Semi-Finals at the Arena Larkin Indoor Stadium, Saturday.
Having grown familiar with one another given their past encounters, the HKA1 outfit took control early before putting together a strong windup as they had the opposition totally in the palm of their hand.
And eventually, they'd put an end to the Mongolian powerhouse's reign as champions of the pan-regional tilt to continue their dream run - and make history for Hong Kong, China basketball along the way.
The most successful HKA1 ball club has booked themselves a ticket to the BCL Asia 2026, becoming the first team from Hong Kong, China to reach the continent's highest club competition since Winling in 2002.
It will also be South China's second ever trip to the prestigious showcase after 1984 in Malaysia, and they accomplished as much behind another collective effort by the men of head coach Lo Yi Ting.
"From now on, every game we win, it will be history for SCAA, and for Hong Kong, China basketball," the former star player turned bench tactician said. "So happy to make it to the next stage. We'll try to win all games."
Rodrigue Andela starred in the triumph with 24 points and 16 rebounds plus 3 steals and 3 blocks, overcoming early foul trouble to play a key role in their second-half attack that kept the opposition at bay.
He took charge when the Broncos roared back from down 20 and came within just six behind their local stars, scoring nine consecutive points to help bring them back up by 12, 71-59, with 1:46 left.
Last year's BCL Asia bronze medalists got to within a single digit again early in the fourth but that's when the others showed up, with Kelvin Tsang and Isaiah Briscoe converting to help restore order.
Glen Yang and Yip Yiu Pong contributed not long after to inflate the lead to 82-65 with 5:52 to go, and the game would never be in question as they went on to share the moment of triumph with one another.
"That was a tough game. If you follow our games, sometimes we're down by 20, sometimes we're down by 17. For us, it doesn't matter. We are going to keep fighting," said Andela, who earned Player of the Game honors.
South China will soon be watching the other bracket featuring 2025 runners-up Taoyuan Pauian Pilots and Dewa United Banten, as the winner of that matchup will be their opponents in the Final tomorrow night.
Stedmon Lemon led the Broncos with 22 points in the crushing loss. Jordy Tshimanga supplied 20 points and 24 rebounds for just the second 20-20 game this season after Joshua Ibarra during the Group Phase.
Azbayar Altangerel backed them up with 17 points on 7-of-12 shooting off the bench as the young star winger helped out in their third-quarter rally, but their efforts weren't enough to keep their title retention bid alive.
The Broncos, though, can earn themselves some form of consolation as they're set to play in the Third-Place Game against the losing team of the other pairing tomorrow as well, just before the championship bout.
FIBA